Compression unit



E. B. MALLORY 1,852,175

coMPREssIou UNIT April 5, 1932.

Filed Feb. 21, 1950 zsnee'ys-sneex 1 INVENTOR W13 BY 39/5 ATTORNEYS April 5, 1932. E. B. MALLORY col muassmn UNIT Filed Feb. 21, 19:50

2 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR 0/: ATTORNEYS Patented A r. 5, 1932 I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE EDWARD 1B. MALLORY, OF TENAFLY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB TO THE CLIMAX ENGI- NEERING COMPANY, OF CLINTON, IOWA, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE COMPRESSION UN IT Application filed February 21, 1930. Serial No. 430,231.

This invention relates to refrigerating systems and more particularly concerns an 1mproved refrigerating unit for use in connection with refrigerating systems of the com pression type.

Refrigeratmg systems of the compression type generally include a suitable compressor, mechanically driven by an electric motor or other suitable means, and connected to withdraw gaseous refri erant from an evaporator, compress this refrlgerant and discharge the compressed refrigerant to suitable condensing means. Systems of this type are exten-. ,sively used for small domestic and commercial installations to cool refrigerator cabinets, water coolers and like devices, and when so employed, it is desirable that the opera t-v ing mechanism of the system be constructed to operate quietly and without substantial vibration.

Most systems of the type described are operated intermittently, the compressor driving motor being started and stopped at intervals in accordance with the temperature of the associated cabinet 01' other space or medium to be cooled. When oscillatory or reciprocating compressors are employed, the

compression means vibrates considerably dur-' ing operation, and in any case, vibrations of varying magnitude and frequency are set up in the compressor and the driving motor when the operation of the system isinterrupted or initiated. Thus when the driving motor is deenergized, the moving parts of the motor and compressor continue to operate at a rapidly decreasing rate due to the momentum required thereby during operation, and vibrations of decreasing frequency are thereby set up. Likewise, when the motor isv first energized after an idle period and" the moving parts come up to operating speed, vibrations of increasing frequency are produced. The magnitude of these vibrations varies somewhat with the load on the compressor at the times that the driving 'motor is energized and deenergized.

In known devices of the type described, the vibrations originating in the compressor and the driving motor are transmitted to the compression mechanism supporting means and to other-elements of the refrigerating unit or the structure with which it is associated, and since the range of frequency of the vibrations varies between wide limits, and usu-. ally includes frequencies corresponding to the natural'period of vibration of some of the associated elements,'vibrations of objectionable amplitude are often produced. Thus, when the compression unit is fixed to a refrigerator cabinet in which food containers and other articles of various sizes are dis- "posed, the vibrations originating in the compression mechanism may be transmitted to the cabinet and to the containers therein and objectionable noises and vibrations 'frequently result.

' With the above and other considerations in mind, it is proposed in accordance with the present invention to provide non-resilient flexible mounting means for the compression mechanism of a refrigerating system, which mounting means acts to damp out or absorb the vibrations originating'in the compression mechanism and to effectively prevent the transmission of such vibrations to the associated mechanism or to the refrigerator structure. It is further proposed to provide a compression unit for refrigerating systems in which the operating mechanism is compactly assembled and enclosed in a sealed casing, and in which flexible nonresilient supporting means of a very compact construction are provided for supporting the operating mechanism within the casing.

A further object of the present invention resides in the provision of a compression unit for refrigerating systems'embodying vibration absorbing means for the operating mechanism which also acts as a filter or strainer for the fluid employed to lubricate reference tothe accompanying drawings, in

which of a refrigerating unit embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 of Fig. 1 and viewed in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation similar to Fig. 1, showing a refrigerating unit embodying a modified form of my invention; and

ig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 44 of Fig. 3 and viewed in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, one embodiment of my invention includes aunitary refrigerating mechanism comprising a sealed compression unit U and a condenser C. The compression unit U includes a base plate 1 on which a compressor P and a driving motor M therefor are mounted in supernnposed relation by means of vibration absorbing supporting means as hereinafter described. The motor M and compressor P are enclosed within a dome shaped casing shell 9, formed of sheet metal or other suitable material, the lower edge of which is sealed to the base plate 1. As shown in the drawings, a depression 10 is formed near the lower edge .7

' of the shell 9 and the base plate 1 is snug fitted within this depressi-onand locked in place by a spring ring 11 which ex ands into, a groove 12 adjacent the lower e ge of the casing shell 9. After being assembled in the manner described, the joint between the base plate 1 and the casing shell 9 is preferably sealed by tinning, soldering or welding as indicated at25. The casing sealing means disclosed forms-no part of the present invention and is claimed in the eopending application of Robert L. Alexander and JamesR. McCallum, Serial No. 431,524, filed February 14, 1930. The casing shel19 is preferably provided with heat radiating projections such as the fins 13.

The compressor P .is preferably of the oscillatory or wabbler piston type described in detail in my copending application, Serial No. 428,324, filed February 14, 1930, and includes a lower end plate 2, a cylinder wall member 3 and an upper end plate 4, these parts being. clamped toegther by suitable means. 'A vertical shaft 5 is carried in suitable bearing's in the end plates 2 and 4, and the rotor (i of an electric motor M is fixed to the upper end of this shaft as shown. The stator 7 of the motor M is supported in surrounding and operative relation to the rotor 6 by means of a pluralit of brackets 8 which may be formed integrally with or suitably secured to the upper end plate 4 of the compressor P. Thecompressor P draws a gaseous refriger." at from the evaporator, not shown, through an intake pipe 22 sealed through the base plate 1, and discharges compressed refrigerant as to the interior of the compression casing ormed by the base plate 1 and the casing shell 9. The internal construction of the compressor P will be described more in detail in connection with modification of Figs. 3 and 4.

Referring now more particularly to the vi bration absorbing supporting means employed in the modification of Figs. 1 and 2, a plurality of outwardly and downwardly extending supporting legs 14 are formed integral with or suitably secured to the upper end plate 4 of the compressor P. The lower ends of the several legs '14 preferably lie in a singleplane, as shown in Fig. l. A plurality of upwardly extending brackets 15 are fixed-to or formed integral with the casing base plate 1 near the outer edges thereof as shown. A vibration absorbing supporting element 16 rests upon the upper ends of the brackets 15 and the. lower ends of the legs 14 rest upon the upper surface of the element 16 at points circumferentially spaced from the brackets 15, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The brackets 15 and the legs 14 may be fixed to the element 16 by suitable means such as the rivets 15'. In

this manner, the motor-compressor structure may be employed for this purpose. In the disa closed embodiment, the element comprises a comparatively thin sheet of material of annular shape, as shown in Fig. 2, but the thickness and shape of this element may be varied without departing from the scope of thisinvention.

The compression unit U is preferably supported in spaced relation to and above a surface 19 by suitable means such as the leigs 20.

a re- The surface 19 may comprise the top 0 fri-gerator cabinet, or any other supporting surface. A condenser C comprising a plurality of turns of pipe 17 is preferably mounted below the compression unit U and beneath the heat radiating fins 13 on the casing shell 9. Suitable heat radiating fins 18 are preferably disposed between the coils ofvthe pipe 17 and on the inner and outer surface thereof as shown. The condenser C is preferably supported by 'thecompression unit U, and may be carried by askirt or shroud 21 fixed to the lower ends of the fins 13 on the casing shell 9. The condenser C is spaced from the surface 19 to permit the flow of cooling air there-' througln An outlet pipe 24 is sealed in an opening in the casing shell 9 and terminates whereby any vibrations the condenser C is connected through suitable expansion means to an evaporator, not shown.

.The intake pipe 22 of the compressor P communicates with the compressor through a check valve 23. The section of the pipe 22 within the compression casing may include one or more loops or turns to increase the flexibility thereof and thereby prevent the transmission of vibrations therethrough. The intake pipe 22 is-preferably formed of a nonresilient and flexible material such as copper originating in the motor-compressor structure are largely damped therefrom and are not transmitted to the base plate 1. i v

It will be apparent that when the motor and compressor are in operation, the vibrations resulting from the motion of the parts of these elements and from the intermittent discharge of the compressed refrigerant to the interior of the casingare transmitted by the legs 14 to the vibration absorbing element 16 and are there damped'and absorbed. In this manner, undesirablevibrations are confined to the operating mechanism alone and the vibration'of'the compression casing, the condenser structure 0, the supporting surface 19 or any other associated parts or structure is effectively prevented. Due to the ab sorption of the vibrations within the sealed compression casing, the refrigerating unit operates very quietly and does not vibrate during starting or stopping.

Referring'nowmore particularly to the modification of my invention shown in Figs. P

3 and 4, the compression unit U of this modification includes a dome shape casing shell- 9' sealed to a base plate 40 in the manner described above in connectionwith the modification of Figs. land 2, and forming therewith a compression casing. Lateral heat radiating fins 13' are preferably provided on the casing shell 9. and a condenser C- is'suitably mounted below the compression unit U and beneath the fins 13' thereon as shown. The compression unit U is supported above and in spaced relation to a surface 19' by the legs 20' engaging the lower surface of the base plate 40, and a space is provided beneath the lower end of the condenser C to permit the flow of cooling air thereto.

A compressor P and-adriving' motor M therefor are enclosed within-the compression casing and supported in spacedrelation thereto as hereinafter described.

As shown in Fig. 3, the compressor P comprises a lower end plate 2 surmounted by a cylinder wall member 3, these elements'be- 'ing clamped together and to an upper end plate 27 by suitable means such as the machine screws 28. A thrust bearing opening 29 is formed in the upper surface ofthe lower flange 41 and manner. As shown,

end plate 2' and is concentrically disposed with respect to the central opening 30 in the wall member 3', which opening forms the compressor cylinder. An upwardly extending ournal bearing 31 is formed integral with the upperend plate 27 and a vertical shaft 5' is carried in this hearing and in the thrust bearing 29 in the lower end plate 2. An eccentric 33 is fixed to the shaft 5' within the cylinder opening 30, and an annular piston 34 surrounds and rotatably engages this eccentric within the cylinder as shown. A radially extended blade 35 is provided on the piston 34 and is suitably supported for oscillatory and reciprocatory motion in a recess 36 in the cylinder wall member 3'; An intake check valve 23 of suitable construction is provided in the" lower end plate 2, and the intake pipe 22 communicates with this valve as shown. An intake port 37 for the compressor extends through the end plate 2 from the check valve 23 to a point within the cylinder adjacent one side of the piston blade 35, and a discharge port 38 extends through the upper end plate27 to a point within the cylinder adjacent the other side of the blade 35. The upper end of the discharge port 38 of the compressor is provided with a-check' valve 39 0 suitable construction. Duri g operating, the annular piston 34 is moved in an'eccentric path within the cylinder opening 30 by the eccentric 33 on the shaft 5', and the piston draws the gaseous refrigerant through the intake port 37, compresses this refrigerant and discharges the compressed fluid through the-discharge port 38. The operation of the compressor is more full exlained in my copending application, g; No. 428,324 referred to above.

The base plate 40 is provided with an annular upstanding flange or supporting portion 41 extending around the outer edge thereof adjacent the inner surface of the Gas ing shell 9'. A vibration absorbing supporting element 42 of annular shape is secure at its outer edge to the upper end of the flange 41 v by suitable means such as the ring 43 which is clamped to the flange 41 by the machine screws 44. The inner edge of the element/42 is fixed to the compressor structure in any suitable manner/and in the disclosed embodiment, aring 45 is employed to clamp the element 42 'to the upper surface of the compressor end plate 27 adjacent the outer edge thereof. In one form of the invention, it is preferred to form a tight joint between the-vibration absorbing element and both the the clamping rings 43 and 45 and screws '44" disclosed effectively accomplish this purpose.

The rotor 6" of the motor M is fixed to the shaft 5 adjacent its upper end, and the motor the upper end plate 27, and

stator 7 may be secured to the upper-end plate 27 of the compressor P'inany suitable a plurality of upstandner the mechanism is lubricated. this oil seeps past the piston 34 and is dis-- ing supporting brackets 46 are provided on the ring 45 which is secured to the end plate 27, and the motor stator 7 is suitably fixed to these brackets in surrounding and operative relation to the motor rotor 6.

An oil duct 47 is provided in the lower end plate 2' and connects the thrust bearing opening'29 with the interior of the compression casing. An axial oil duct 48 is provided in the shaft 5 and a plurality of lateral ducts 49 and 50 con'unuuicate with the duct 48 and with the bearing surfaces of the journal 31 and the eccentric 33 respectively. A quantity of oil or other suitable lubricant 51 is introduced intothe compression casing and fills the lower portion thereof to approximately the level indicated by the line 52. During operation, the pressure built up in the compression casing forces the oil 51 through the coimnuuicating oilducts 47, 48, 49 and 50 to the bearing surfaces of the compressor P and the motor M, and in this man- Some of charged from the compressor throughthe port 38 in the form of a spray.\ This oil, together with such additional oil as may seep from the journal bearing 31, flows over the ring 45 and falls upon the upper surface of the vib 'ation absorbing supporting element The condenser C of the modification of Figs. 3 and 4, is connected in communication with the compression casing by a pipe 24, and the outlet pipe 26 of the condenser 18 connected through suitable expansion means to an evaporator. The outlet of the evaporator is connected to'the intake pipe 22 in the usual manner. Since many suitable forms of expansion means and evaporators are well known in the art, a nd's'ince these means form no part of the present invention, a showing thereof has been omitted to simplify the drawings. The absorbing supporting element 42 of the modification of Figs. 3 and 4 is formed of a flexible non-resilient'substance such as textile fabric or fine mesh screening of non-resilient Wire such as lead or copper.

During the operation ofthe motor M and compressor P, the vibrations originating in these devices are effectively damped and absorbed by the element 42 and the transmission of these vibrations to the compression casing or other associated structure is prevented. The element 42 is preferably perviou's to the lubricant employed and accordingly acts as a-filter or screening element for removing impurities from the 011 51. The

' oil flows on to the upper surface of the element 42 as explained above, anddrips there- I through to the lower'portion of the compression casing, from which point it' is reintroduced to-the bearingsurface of the mechanism ,t-hrough the oil duct 47.' The vibration of the element 42 during the operation of the mechanism agitates the oil thereonand prevents the clogging of the interstices therethrough. f

It will be readily apparent that the refrigerating unit of the present invention em-- bodies many advantageous features. Since the vibration absorbing supporting means is.

a complete cycle, and the resonant vibration of the supporting element is prevented.

Due to the construction en'iployed, the vibration absorbing supporting means may be incorporated in the compression unit without substantial enlargement or complication thereof, and when the form of- Figs. 3 and 4 is employed, the supporting element acts as an effective oil filter or screen and maintains the lubricant employed free' from foreign matter which might injure the bearing surface of the mechanism.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in connection with certain specific embodiments, it should be understood that the scope of the invention is not limited to the constructions shown. Thus, various fiex ible and non-resilient materials other than those disclosed may be employed to form the vibration absorbing supporting element, the form and mounting of this element may be varied and other changes, modifications and omissions may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A compression. unit for refrigerating systems comprising operating mechanism including a motor and a refrigerant compressor connected to' be driven thereby, means for admitting a lubricant to the moving parts of said operating mechanism, a pervious flexible supporting element for saidoperating mechanism and means for passing the-lubricant admitted to said mechanism through said supporting element.

2. A compression unit for refrigerating systems comprising operating mechanism including a motor and a refrigerant compressor connected to be driven thereby, means for admitting a lubricant to the moving parts of,

- crating mechanism, means necting said operating mechanism to said casing and extendin laterally between said mechanism and said casing, means for admitting a lubricant to said operating mechanism from said casing at a point below said supporting element, and means fordischarging lubricant from said mechanism to the upper surface of said element.

4. A compression unit for refrigerating systems comprising operating mechanism in-' cluding a motor and a refrigerant compressor connected to be driven thereby, a compression casing completely surrounding said op- I for supporting said mechanism in spaced relation to the interior of said casing comprising a pervious flexible vibration absorbing element sealed to said mechanism and to said casing and forming a filtering partition in said casing and means for passing a lubricant through said element and to at least some of the moving parts of the operating mechanism. '5. A compression unit for refrigerating systems comprising a unitary operating mechanism including a'motor and refrigerant compressor connected to be driven thereby,

a casing completely surrounding said opcrating mechanism, a supporting and oil filteringelement comprising a sheet of flexible pervious material sealed to said operating mechanism and to the interior of said casing and supporting said mechanism in spaced relation to said casing, and means for c rculating a lubricant through said sheet andsaid operating mechanism.-

6. A compression unit for refrigerating systems comprising a compression casing, a sheet of flexible perviousmaterial having an o enin therein. means for connectin said sheet to the interior of said casing, a refrigerant compressor sealed in the openin in said sheet and supported by said sheet, ving means for said compressor mounted thereon and means for causing a lubricant tocirculate successively through said compressor' and said sheet.

7. -A compression systems comprising, a unitary operating mechanism including a-motor and a refrigerant'compressor connected tov be driven there'- by, a casing completely surrounding said opcrating mechanism,a supporting and oil filculating a lubricant through said operating mechamsm and said sheet.

8. A compression unit for refrigerating systems comprising a compressor having a unit for refrigerating teri-ng element comprisin an annular sheet of pervious flexible material, means for connecting the outer edge of said sheet to the interior of said casing, means for se said operating'mechanism to said'sheet ad acent its inner edge and means for sueeefiv y eir- I 

